During a remarkably honest assessment of the current crop at The Emirates, the Frenchman ­finally seemed to accept that, while they possess flair by the bucketload, they lack any real bite.

Ahead of Arsenal’s crunch derby trip to Chelsea today, Wenger said:

Refs love Arsenal because they are so easy to officiate

His Premier League flops must get meaner and tougher and

He wants to sign more physically powerful ­players

Asked if his 2013 class are simply too nice on the park, the Gunners supremo said: “You’re right. It may be the price we pay for being a very technical team.

“And maybe we have to go back a bit – not so we are less ­technical but so we are more physical.

“I think that we have to be more aggressive because when ­referees see on the sheet it’s Arsenal they all say, ­‘Fantastic!’

“We do have physical ­players who have the character to do this. Jack Wilshere, Per Mertesacker and Thomas Vermaelen are characters who can be leaders.

“But maybe we have to add more of them to ­restructure the balance of the team.

“And it’s correct that we need to be more physical in the really big games. We did it at Man City and at Liverpool but we haven’t done it at home all season.”

Wenger stopped short of calling for a return of the old days at ­Highbury when all-conquering ­Arsenal, led by Tony Adams and then Patrick Vieira, were in ­disciplinary trouble most weeks.

He certainly is not ordering Wilshere and Co to kick lumps out of Chelsea this afternoon or launch ­themselves into flying two-footed ­lunges.

Tackling is a fading skill according to Wenger, who is vehemently against the idea that it should be outlawed to protect the game’s more gifted players. But he was shocked that the straight red card shown to Man City skipper

Vincent Kompany in last Sunday’s 2-0 win at Arsenal – for a foul on Wilshere – was rescinded by the FA’s independent panel.

The Gunners boss added: “I am surprised it was overturned.

“I don’t think Kompany intended to hurt Jack but it was a clumsy tackle and – ­technically – a bad one that could be red.

“If you go into a tackle facing the player with two legs you don’t know where you finish up. The art of tackling, which is disappearing, is about going in with one leg while the other one is bent.

“When a full-back slides in on a winger with one leg and gets the ball, that’s an art. That is a technique you don’t want to lose.”

Wenger’s view that Arsenal lack the muscular presence to compete against the very best – and his intention to address the ­issue – will be music to the ears of the restless Emirates faithful.

Yet they might wonder why it has taken him so long to see the light.

After all, during the club’s ongoing seven-and-a-half year trophy drought, they have regularly raised the matter.

Yet Wenger insists finding an answer to the problem is easier said than done unless you have unlimited funds like Chelsea.

He added: “We created another back four after Tony Adams left. They ­became The Invincibles – people forget that but it’s difficult to always find the right solution.

“Chelsea are in transition at the ­moment because, like us, they have lost historical players recently. But they have the financial potential to replace them and rebuild.

“It takes time but they still have a very good cheque book. Chelsea are on such a different ­financial planet they can always buy what they need.

“And they’ve signed some great players recently such as Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and David Luiz.”

Meanwhile, Wenger reckons Theo Walcott’s new contract means the Gunners now have the “strong nucleus” of young committed players ready to drive the club on to success.

England man Walcott, 23, has signed a new ­three-and-a-half year deal, said to be worth £100,000 a week.